The academic credentials of Turkish Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan have come under scrutiny after a lawmaker from the country’s main opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP) claimed irregularities in his university degree, Turkish Minute reported.
While in the Turkish military and serving on a NATO mission abroad, Fidan obtained a bachelor’s degree in 1997 in Politics and Administrative Science from what was then called the University of Maryland University College, with his studies there starting in 1994.
Although a standard undergraduate degree in Turkey lasts four years, Turkey’s Higher Education Board’s (YÖK) issued him an equivalency certificate in January 1998, recognizing his degree as the equivalent of a Turkish political science diploma.
CHP Deputy Chairman Namık Tan, a former ambassador, filed a parliamentary question in August questioning the legitimacy of Fidan’s university diploma, saying that he was allowed to begin his master’s studies at the Ankara-based Bilkent University in 1997 without receiving equivalency from YÖK for his bachelor’s degree.
On Sunday Tan shared YÖK’s response to his question on X, saying that it confirmed his doubts.
“Unfortunately, our suspicions were justified. Official records show that Hakan Fidan completed only a three-year distance-learning undergraduate program and began his master’s degree at Bilkent University without receiving YÖK equivalency,” he tweeted.
YÖK, in its written response, confirmed that Fidan completed his undergraduate education between 1994 and 1997 and obtained an equivalency certificate in 1998. It also noted that he earned a master’s degree at Bilkent University, where he studied between 1997 and 1999, and completed his Ph.D. in international relations there in 2006.
Tan questioned how a three-year program could be treated as a full four-year undergraduate degree under Turkish standards and why Fidan’s master’s studies at Bilkent appeared to have begun before official recognition of his diploma.
“Which regulation, which privilege could allow this?” Tan asked, accusing the government of undermining merit and transparency.
He also called on Fidan to publicly release his transcript and other academic records, describing the issue as a test of institutional integrity rather than a personal controversy.
“This is not a biographical debate but a matter of public trust and the rule of law,” Tan said.
The 57-year-old Fidan began his career in the Turkish Armed Forces before earning his degree in government and politics through the University of Maryland’s European division. After completing his graduate studies at Bilkent, he worked at the Turkish International Cooperation and Development Agency (TİKA), eventually serving as its president.
Fidan became one of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan’s closest allies after joining the Prime Ministry in the 2000s. He headed Turkey’s National Intelligence Organization (MİT) from 2010 to 2023, playing a key role in shaping Ankara’s foreign and security policy before being appointed foreign minister in Erdoğan’s new cabinet following the 2023 elections.
Widely regarded as one of the most powerful figures in Erdoğan’s inner circle, Fidan is also seen by political observers as among the possible successors to the Turkish president.
Past controversies over academic credentials
The latest controversy about Fidan’s education comes amid ongoing controversies surrounding the educational backgrounds of other leading Turkish politicians.
Erdoğan is also at the center of a controversy regarding his university degree. There has been an ongoing debate in Turkey since Erdoğan’s 2014 election as president as to his completion or not of university since the Office of the President has provided no satisfactory documentation of his graduation.
Despite several calls for Erdoğan to produce an original copy of his four-year college degree to prove that he is eligible to be president, no evidence has been forthcoming proving the completion of his studies.
Similarly, İstanbul Mayor Ekrem İmamoğlu, Erdoğan’s main political rival who was jailed in March on what many call politically motivated corruption charges, faced similar accusations and even had the diploma he obtained from İstanbul University’s faculty of business administration cancelled earlier this year.
The university nullified İmamoğlu’s diploma in March, citing alleged irregularities in his 1990 transfer from a private university in northern Cyprus. The annulment, seen as an attempt to prevent İmamoğlu from running for president, sparked widespread demonstrations that were met with heavy police intervention.
A university degree is a legal requirement for presidential candidates in Turkey, making the diploma case critical to İmamoğlu’s candidacy. The 54-year-old was nominated by the CHP as its presidential candidate shortly after his arrest.
The controversy over Fidan’s academic background could jeopardize his chances of succeeding Erdoğan if his university degree were to be invalidated, as in İmamoğlu’s case.
